Holy crap, it’s Christmas Eve! What are you doing reading blogs when you could be out celebrating and baking and shopping for last minute gifts? Not in the mood? Well, I am.
This is a day of great excitement in my family. So here’s a little carol, with phenomenal harmony, to get your Christmas spirit jumping and boiling. Okay? Okay.
Happy holidays, merry Christmas, and happy festivus to the rest of ya! Hooray for today.
This one I love, partly because my daughter plays it on the piano and I love that sound, but also because I feel like this a lot during the holidays. Sometimes we get so caught up in buying, and spending, and crazy time sucks, that we forget what we’re celebrating and why.
Also, I think we can all learn a lot from the Grinch.
So for today’s selection, I give you Faith Hill and Where Are You Christmas.
After Monday's post, I decided that this week I'm going to share with you some of the music that has most affected me during the holiday season. For me, music can make or break my mood, and this year, I can use a little mood music.
Plus, the kids are off school, so I'm spending the week doing fun things with my family. Don't worry, I LOVE Christmas music, so I'll be posting through the weekend as well. (But then I'm taking off the week after--you know, priorities.)
This next selection is another one I've loved for years, because it really hits home for me. (Yes, it's on the same CD as Monday's choice--coincidence? Uh, no.)
Earlier this week, I was cleaning, and came across a book with CD, written and performed by recording artist Amy Grant. In this book, she tells the story of how one of her most amazing songs came to be written. As it happens, that song is a Christmas one, and it is my all time favorites. The book reminded me of a story of my own.
The years surrounding Christmas 1995 were some of the hardest I ever hope to face, and to this day, that fact holds strong. To tell you the story would be highly personal, possibly boring, and likely require an entire novel, so I won’t go into detailed explanations.
Suffice it to say, the foundations of my entire life were shaken, and in some places shattered into irreparable pieces. My heart was broken in about a hundred different ways (not having anything to do with my husband). That year, I discovered that evil lurked in the world, that things weren’t always as we believed them to be, and that even the people you trust most are capable of lies.
During this time, I had three things going for me that saved my life in more ways than I can count.
1. I was married to an amazing man who left work to come home and hold me when I needed to be held.
2. I had a two-year-old son who was the brightest part of my life.
3. I was pregnant with my second child—a daughter—whose arrival would make my life all the brighter, better, and sweeter.
That year for Christmas, my husband bought me a portable CD player with a car adapter (I only had cassette at the time), and I also got a copy of Amy Grant’s CD. This song (the one featured in the book I found the other day) is the one that helped me find strength to push through. I would listen to it over and over again, hands on my stomach as my daughter moved around, and know that I was strong enough.
The song is called Breath of Heaven, and to this day, hearing it makes my eyes tear. Merry Christmas, my friends. May you ever find the strength you need to push through your hardest trials, the way Mary did.
**Scroll down to see who won the Give Books for Christmas giveaway!**
The other day, my (adult) son and I had a conversation about what would happen if Santa got sick and couldn’t deliver presents.
His best solution was that we send up the Bat signal so Batman could take his place. You know, because the Bat Mobile is fast and could probably fit all the presents in it.
I also think Spiderman could do a good job, because, clearly, he’s not afraid of heights, and he has easy access to chimneys.
Or Superman, because he can fly and see through walls with his x-ray vision, and he's strong enough to carry everything in a giant pack.
But the best solution, I think, is Wonder Woman. She can run fast, carry a big load, and deflect speeding bullets with her bracelets and stuff. (Plus, she looks great in this cloak, right?)
I don’t know. If something happened to Santa, who do you think would make a good substitute?
**UPDATE** The winners of the Give Books for Christmas giveaway are Kathleen Brebes and L.T. Elliott. YAY! Congratulations, ladies. I'll be emailing you this morning.
Tis the season of family togetherness. (Read: Fighting, bickering, arguing.) And I know there are a whole bunch of activities that will help bring the holiday spirit home. (And if that doesn’t work, there’s always duct tape.)
I think playing, eating, and even watching TV together can be a good thing, even if needed in small doses. But there’s nothing like a good holiday story to change the tone and restore peace among men (or children, as the case may be).
Today’s topic: Holiday Stories
1. The Nativity (Isn’t that a given?)
2. T’was the Night Before Christmas.
3. The Snow Tree (on my kids insistence—because the pages are texturized, I guess.)
4. You Are Special (not just a holiday story, but one we love, just the same.)
5. The Polar Express
And on my personal TBR list this season:
1. The Christmas List by Richard Paul Evans
See that list up there? It’s woefully short. And yeah, I have plenty of books on my to be read list, but still. I want to know what other fabulous holiday books are out there. So spill. What’s your favorite holiday story?
One of my favorite memories from my childhood is the treat table my mother established during the week of Christmas. We didn’t actually sit down to meals on it, but there was always so much food. Chips and salsa, cheese ball and crackers, ham, rolls cheese. Of course, after a couple hours, those things ended up in the fridge rather than the table, and we were left with breads, cookies, candies, and other delicious, delectable treats.
Even after I grew up and moved out of my parents’ house and into one with my own family, the tradition continued. Whenever neighbors or friends or family members brought us a thoughtful yummy, on the table it would go.
As my kids have grown, our treat table has started being established in early December, sort of as a kickoff for the real Christmas season. So far, this year, we have a few minor things on our table. But there are always other great ideas of treats that would be a welcome addition to our other regulars.
Today’s topic: Treats
1. Orange sticks—because seriously. Who doesn’t need a little bit of chocolate during the holidays?
2. Gingerbread cookies—I’m not going to lie, I buy the Grandma’s brand.
3. Homemade caramels—No, I haven’t made these yet, but I’m going to. Soon.
4. Cinnamon Roasted Almonds—I make these too. SO GOOD.
5. Caramel Apple or Pumpkin bread.
6. Hard candies
7. A box of delicious chocolates
8. Chips and salsa (usually homemade, and these stay in the fridge)
9. Cheese ball and crackers (our favorite cheeseball is a seafood one)
10. Chocolate marshmallow Santa’s/snowmen.
What are your favorite treats at this time of year? Shall we add them to our table too?
It’s Christmas time! And I'm participating in the Give Books for Christmas Giveaway Hop, hosted by Inksplasher.
Again, I’m not jumping on a bandwagon, but doing something that sounded fun because, well, it’s Christmas, and I feel like giving things away. Yahoo!
Every year my kids come in on Christmas morning and open at least one book. Some of them (my book lovers) receive multiples. Sometimes, mom gets all the books, and then passes them around. But regardless of whom opens the brightly wrapped box of books, rest assured, they’re there every year.
I believe the world would be such a better place if everyone gave books for Christmas. (For your convenience, here's a really amazing online holiday catalog: http://www.eclecticbookscatalog.com/. You can also learn more about books written by me by checking out my books tab.)
So I’m giving away not one, but TWO copies of Hashbrown Winters by Frank Cole. This is the first in a series, and the books are hilarious, short, and easy to read. The perfect gift for that early reader on your list.
The blurb:
There I stood, hiding next to the vending machines, disguised as a potted plant. I brushed the plastic leaves from my face and stared down the hallway toward the front double doors. Snow Cone always said one day this ridiculous costume would come in handy. Fifteen minutes had passed since the last student left for the buses, but I wasn t about to take any chances. Not with my life hanging in the balance. Leaning forward, I peered around the corner just as the sound of footsteps echoed down the hallway. Was this it? Could this be him? Was I about to be pulverized by Hambone while wearing an emergency disguise I had just pulled from my locker? Hashbrown Winters and his treehouse club of buddies are well known around Pordunce Elementary, especially after Hashbrown s seminar last year on how to give the best show and tell performances... er, presentations. But when Hashbrown accidentally crosses Hambone Oxcart, the death dealer of Pordunce, he ll need more than just the support of his friends to survive Hambone s wrath.
Here are the details:
In order to give myself time to contact the winner, I’m going to close this contest on DECEMBER 15th at NOON. So if you enter, watch your email that day.
To enter you must be a follower (see the sidebar) and leave a comment telling me what books are on your Christmas list this year. That’s it!
The hop runs from December 1 through the 15th. All books will be shipped on December 16th. We can't guarantee books will arrive in time for Christmas, but we're going to give it a good try! **U.S. mailing addresses only, please**
At the end of this post, you'll see a long list of the participating blogs. Just click the links and go check out the contests.
